Another exciting season of BC Community Football is in the books after the BCCFA concluded their season with their showcase event – the 43rd annual edition of the 12-man provincial championships – this past Sunday at McLeod Stadium in Langley.
In the end, five teams emerged with the right to call themselves provincial champions.
The Midget Division saw the most hotly contested match of the day with the Victoria Spartans, led by Coach Dave Shortt, squeaking out a 24-20 victory over the Mission Niners. The victory capped what was an unbelievable Cinderella run for the Spartans who were last team to qualify for the Midget Division playoffs finishing with the eighth best record in the regular season with five wins, four losses and one tie. On their way to the provincial title, they knocked off the undefeated top-seeded Langley Stampeders and then the third-seeded Cloverdale Bengals.
Sunday’s action at McLeod Stadium kicked off with the Atom Division championship game and saw the Westside Warriors emerge victorious over the Abbotsford Falcons. It was a clash between two teams that had gone unbeaten throughout their respective regular seasons and playoffs but in the end, it was the crew led by head coach Mike Pauls who capped off the perfect season with the 24-0 win. Officially, the Warriors are recognized by the BCCFA as co-Atom Division champions this season sharing the title with the Kelowna-Mission Lions who played their as part of the BCCFA’s 9-man league and won their championship game in the event that took place in November.
The Pee Wee Division championship saw a bit of an upset with the Chilliwack Giants Blue upending the undefeated Coquitlam Wildcats by a score of 28-13. The Giants Blue finished 7-3 during their regular season but went on to capture the VCFL title by defeating the VCFL’s top-seeded team, the Abbotsford Falcons, before winning a provincial semifinal over the Interior’s Kelowna Mission Lions. Head Coach Lawrence Smith’s Giants were deserving winners over a Wildcats team that had dominated their opposition throughout the entire VMFL regular season and playoffs.
The Jr. Bantam Division championship was a high-scoring battle that, in the end, was won by the Coquitlam Raiders who defeated the Kelowna Dragons by a 48-20 score. The victory in the provincial championship capped off a perfect season for the Raiders who went 9-0 during the regular season then defeated the Vancouver Trojans, North Surrey Eagles, and Langley Outlaws in the VMFL playoffs to earn a berth in the provincial final. The Dragons were also unbeaten heading into Sunday but just couldn’t muster up enough offence needed to knock off the Raiders.
The Bantam Division final got off to a late start after the BCCFA opted to delay the game’s start time to 6:00 pm in place of the Midget final that got the 3:30 pm time slot in order to assist with team travel. The Langley Mustangs didn’t mind that one bit as they completely dominated the Chilliwack Giants by a final score of 58-1. Head Coach Cliff Freeman’s Mustangs crew were undefeated during the VMFL regular season but were seeded second on a tie-breaker formula. They proved in the VMFL that they deserved to be the best after knocking off the other undefeated VMFL team, the North Surrey Tigers, to earn the League championship before ending their season on a high with a provincial championship.
Football BC would like to congratulate all of Sunday’s winners as well as all teams that participated in BC Community Football this season be it in Flag Football, 9-man Football, or 12-man Football. We look forward to seeing you hit the field again in 2011!
Source: Football Bc
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